{"id":20744,"date":"2014-01-25T16:31:19","date_gmt":"2014-01-25T16:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/?p=20744"},"modified":"2014-01-25T16:31:19","modified_gmt":"2014-01-25T16:31:19","slug":"return-to-rocket-chassis-has-mccreadie-bullish-about-2014-world-of-outlaws-late-model-series-championship-prospects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/front-page-news\/return-to-rocket-chassis-has-mccreadie-bullish-about-2014-world-of-outlaws-late-model-series-championship-prospects\/","title":{"rendered":"Return To Rocket Chassis Has McCreadie Bullish About 2014 World of Outlaws Late Model Series Championship Prospects"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Yorker Ready To Kick Off Season\u00a0Feb. 14-16\u00a0At Bubba Raceway Park &\u00a0Feb. 20-22At Volusia Speedway Park<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"012413_TMac1\"CONCORD, NC \u2013 Jan. 24, 2014 \u2013 Whether Tim McCreadie can raise his game sufficiently to make a serious run at the World of Outlaws Late Model Series championship in 2014 remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: he isn\u2019t lacking for confidence as he plunges into the chase.<\/p>\n

When the national tour\u2019s \u201914 campaign kicks off with the Bubba Army Dirt Late Model Winter Nationals on\u00a0Feb. 14-16\u00a0at Bubba Raceway Park in Ocala, Fla., and the DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment on\u00a0Feb. 20-22\u00a0at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., McCreadie fully expects to be in the title conversation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t go out on tour if I didn\u2019t think we had a shot at winning the championship,\u201d Watertown, N.Y.\u2019s McCreadie asserted with steely-eyed resolve. \u201cThat\u2019s always the focus. Now, it hasn\u2019t worked out that we\u2019ve been a contender the last few years, but we\u2019ve always thought we had good enough cars and help to win a championship and it\u2019s no different this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCreadie, of course, knows what it takes to be a World of Outlaws champion. He won the crown in 2006, just three years after switching his focus to dirt Late Model racing from his roots in the Northeast\u2019s DIRTcar Big-Block Modified division.<\/p>\n

But since reaching the WoO LMS mountaintop, McCreadie has struggled to find his way back. While he\u2019s never finished outside the top five in the points standings since returning as a series regular in 2010 (he entered only selected WoO LMS events from 2007-2009), he\u2019s only gotten a sniff of a title once. That was in \u201910 when he battled Josh Richards and Darrell Lanigan until faltering late in the season and settling for a third-place finish.<\/p>\n

McCreadie hasn\u2019t forgotten how to win \u2013 with eight triumphs over the past two seasons (three in \u201912, five in \u201913), he ranks behind only Lanigan (27 wins) and Richards (12) on the WoO LMS victory list for the period \u2013 but he has lost the championship formula. He\u2019s simply been too up-and-down, bidding for a win one night and falling completely out of the mix the next. His failure to find consistent speed is evidenced by the combined 26 DNFs he rang up in 2012 and \u201913, a number accentuated by McCreadie\u2019s penchant for pulling out of races rather than wallowing at the back of the pack.<\/p>\n

McCreadie is well aware of the area in which he needs to improve. In hopes of doing that in 2014, he made an off-season decision with his Sweeteners Plus Racing team to reunite with Rocket Chassis, the car make he hasn\u2019t driven exclusively since 2010. He spent much of the 2011 season running a Victory Circle car and campaigned Warrior Chassis machines in 2012 and \u201913.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last time we were really, really comfortable in our equipment and were a real threat to win the championship the whole way through the year, we were in Rocket stuff,\u201d said McCreadie, who has two new Rocket mounts ready for action. \u201cIt was just me and Al (Stevens) working on the cars back then too, but we have three guys now (including crewmen Craig McCrimmon and Johnny Coco) and we have more people who can come to races and help. So really, I feel like our program is stronger today than it was in 2010 and even back when we won the championship in \u201906. I think we have a stronger core with\u00a0everything<\/em>\u00a0now, so, as long as I can get up to speed with the Rockets, I think we can win like we were winning last year and not be as bad as we were in other races.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what it\u2019s gonna take. You can\u2019t finish 15th<\/sup>\u00a0or drop out and contend for the championship. You\u2019re gonna have to be able to match what the best two cars the last few years are able to do \u2013 that\u2019s Darrell and Josh. They\u2019re the standard right now and we\u2019re doing everything we can to match up with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCreadie figures to benefit from working closely throughout the season with Richards, the three-time and defending WoO LMS champion, and Richards\u2019s father Mark\u2019s Rocket Chassis house car team. With Lanigan leaving the Rocket fold to start up his own car-building business, McCreadie becomes the highest-ranked driver besides Richards running Rocket machines on the circuit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a company decision more than anything,\u201d McCreadie said of his team\u2019s move to Rocket. \u201cBusiness-wise, it just makes sense. Vic (Coffey, McCreadie\u2019s Sweeteners Plus teammate) drives \u2018em and he likes his cars, and we decided that as a company that\u2019s the direction we should go to keep everything more in line.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen after talking with Mark and those guys down at Rocket \u2013 they\u2019re just really good at helping people. Warrior (led by Sanford Goddard) is really good with helping people too, don\u2019t get me wrong. It\u2019s just that there\u2019s more of these (Rocket) cars out there, so that should help me get a baseline (setup) at some places where I struggled last year and hopefully I won\u2019t struggle like that again.\u201d<\/p>\n

With McCreadie ready to celebrate his 40th<\/sup>\u00a0birthday on\u00a0April 12, he understands that he\u2019s in his racing prime. He\u2019s counting on using the larger pool of technical information available at Rocket to maximize the years ahead of him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I\u2019m in a little bit different point in my career,\u201d said McCreadie. \u201cI want to race, but it\u2019s no secret you can\u2019t race forever. I hope I have at least a decade left of being physically fit enough to be at the top of my game and I want to make the most of it \u2013 and I think (running Rocket cars) gives me the best shot to do that.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a shot at anybody, but at this point I just don\u2019t feel like I have the time to be testing and cutting stuff apart to figure things out. I just need to be on the same page with a lot of other people and then hopefully we have enough money put into our equipment, our motors, our tires \u2013 our whole program \u2013 that I\u2019ll be competitive more consistently and won\u2019t have the 15th<\/sup>-place finishes and the dropouts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho knows how everything will turn out?\u201d he continued. \u201cWe could run worse, but hopefully we can capitalize on these Rocket cars being proven to be pretty good and us being out there on the road with Mark and those guys. I think if we take what we learned going out there on our own the last couple years and combine it with the help we can get running Rocket cars, we can put some good results up.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCreadie will begin his championship quest in the Sunshine State, running at two tracks that he gives high ratings. He\u2019s enjoyed success at both speedways, winning dirt Late Model and DIRTcar Big-Block Modified features at Volusia and finishing as high as second (twice) in WoO LMS competition at BRP.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really enjoy both of those places,\u201d McCreadie said of BRP and Volusia. \u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019s the speed and the layout of the tracks or what, but they just feel more comfortable for me to race on them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m never gonna complain about Ocala,\u201d he continued, singling out the egg-shaped, three-eighths-mile oval promoted by nationally-known syndicated radio show host Todd \u2018Bubba the Love Sponge\u2019 Clem. \u201cThe thing we always wish for as race car drivers is a place that gets racy and wide for the feature, and that place has a tendency to do that. More often than not, you can race all over it. Plus, they put up really good money, you get treated good and it\u2019s a nice, clean facility. You can\u2019t ask for anything more.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd for me, Volusia has always just been a natural fit. I feel comfortable there all the time \u2013 and that track, when it\u2019s prepped right where there\u2019s a top and a bottom and it\u2019s black in the middle, is amazing. It\u2019s just so wide and a lot of fun to race on.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sprawling half-mile Volusia oval is a special place for McCreadie, who grew up watching his father, legendary DIRTcar Big-Block Modified driver \u2018Barefoot\u2019 Bob McCreadie, compete there in February and became a Volusia winner himself when he climbed into the cockpit. McCreadie actually won the first dirt Late Model feature of his career at Volusia \u2013 a DIRTcar UMP-sanctioned event on Feb. 9, 2004 \u2013 and one year later, on Feb. 19, 2005, made the track the site of his first-ever WoO LMS victory.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t wait to get down to Volusia every year,\u201d said McCreadie, who also won two DIRTcar UMP-sanctioned A-Mains there in 2005 and pulled off a thrilling triumph over Lanigan and Billy Moyer in last year\u2019s DIRTcar UMP finale. \u201cOcala kind of builds you up with great money and real good racing, and then you go over to Volusia and it\u2019s really hard to argue about how great that (DIRTcar Nationals) week is just because of that Daytona crowd. Volusia is always gonna have a little more amped-up atmosphere just because there\u2019s so many people there you probably will never see anywhere else all year long. There\u2019s people from all types of racing, whether it\u2019s Sprint Car guys who stick around for a few days to watch, or guys from the Daytona track, or even guys from over at the asphalt track at (New) Smyrna who stop in for a night.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just such a huge thing all week. I just love the whole idea of Speedweeks there. To be there and race and be part of the whole atmosphere, it\u2019s just so exciting to me.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo top it off, it\u2019s hard to win there. I mean, it\u2019s hard to win\u00a0everywhere<\/em>, but there\u2019s so many good cars there, if you can get one at Volusia during Daytona week, that\u2019s pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

And a triumph during the Florida excursion would certainly go a long way toward making McCreadie\u2019s World of Outlaws championship dreams come true.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal this year is to go down to Florida and hopefully win some races,\u201d said McCreadie, whose cars will sport a new look this season with the familiar No. 39 on their doors designed to mirror the number plate that appeared on the off-shore boats his team owner, Carl Myers, used to race. \u201cIf we can do that, hopefully we\u2019ll be in the thick of this championship thing all year long.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Bubba Army Dirt Late Model Winter Nationals at Bubba Raceway Park includes three complete WoO LMS programs: a 40-lap A-Main paying $8,000 to win on\u00a0Fri., Feb. 14; a 50-lapper for $10,000 to win on\u00a0Sat., Feb. 15; and the 60-lap \u2018Super\u00a0Sunday\u00a0Showdown\u2019 offering a $12,000 top prize on\u00a0Feb. 16.<\/p>\n

Advance-sale tickets for the Bubba Army Dirt Late Model Winter Nationals are available on-line at\u00a0www.bubbaracewaypark.com<\/a>\u00a0or by calling the track office at 352-622-9400.<\/p>\n

Volusia Speedway Park\u2019s DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment, meanwhile, features 50-lap, $10,000-to-win WoO LMS A-Mains on Thurs., Feb. 20,\u00a0Fri., Feb. 21, and\u00a0Sat., Feb. 22. Most WoO LMS regulars will also compete in DIRTcar UMP-sanctioned Late Model events on\u00a0Mon., Feb. 17,\u00a0Tues., Feb. 18, and\u00a0Wed., Feb. 19.<\/p>\n

More information on the DIRTcar Nationals by Summit, including details on advance ticket packages and the \u2018FREE Fan Pit Pass With Every Ticket\u2019 promotion, can be obtained by visitingwww.DirtCarNationals.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For more information on the WoO LMS, visit\u00a0www.worldofoutlaws.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fans can also follow the WoO LMS on Twitter at\u00a0Twitter.com\/WoOLateModels\u00a0<\/a>and Facebook at\u00a0Facebook.com\/WorldofOutlaws\u00a0<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: American Racing Custom Wheels (Official Custom Wheel), Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), KMC (Official Custom Truck Wheel), STP (Official Fuel Treatment), Vicci (Official Uniform), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel), DirtonDirt.com (Hard Charger Award) and McCarthy’s One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning (Raye Vest Memorial Pill Draw Award); in addition to contingency sponsors: Butlerbuilt, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Dominator Race Products, Edelbrock, Eibach Springs, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, Klotz Synthetic Lubricants, MSD Ignition, Ohlins Shocks, QuarterMaster, Roush Yates Performance Parts, Superflow Dynos, Wrisco Aluminum and XS Power Racing Batteries; along with manufacturer sponsors Capital Race Cars, Integra Shocks, GRT Chassis, Jake\u2019s Carts, Racing Electronics, Rocket Chassis, TNT Rescue, and Warrior Chassis.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New Yorker Ready To Kick Off Season\u00a0Feb. 14-16\u00a0At Bubba Raceway Park &\u00a0Feb. 20-22At Volusia Speedway Park CONCORD, NC \u2013 Jan. 24, 2014 \u2013 Whether Tim […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"publish_to_discourse":"","publish_post_category":"","wpdc_auto_publish_overridden":"","wpdc_topic_tags":"","wpdc_pin_topic":"","wpdc_pin_until":"","discourse_post_id":"","discourse_permalink":"","wpdc_publishing_response":"","wpdc_publishing_error":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22,3,71],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20744","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured","category-front-page-news","category-late-models"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20744","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20744"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20744\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20748,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20744\/revisions\/20748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20744"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20744"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/karnac.com\/flanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20744"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}